Houston Rockets: Five Reasons Rockets Beat Wizards
Despite a career high 38 points from burgeoning superstar John Wall, the Houston Rockets (6-7) defeated the Washington Wizards (1-11) in a Martin Luther King Jr. Day shootout on their way to a 114-106 victory.
Houston received stellar performances from Kevin Martin and Samuel Dalembert along with the obligatory Chandler Parsons tip dunk — check it out over on Court Crusades — but the lack of defense was a bit concerning.
Washington, arguably the league’s worst team, shot nearly 50 percent from the field, and Houston had no answer from the individual scoring prowess of the aforementioned Wall.
The poor defense can probably be chalked up to exhaustion after back-to-back weekend games that required major minutes from Houston’s starters, but they better get it together in a hurry because the Rockets play at the Detroit Pistons Tuesday. Here are five reasons Houston beat Washington:
1) Kevin Martin’s scoring. As the ESPN graphic mentioned today, Martin scores around 28 points in Rockets’ wins, and 14 in the losses. So, as Martin’s shot goes, so goes Houston. Monday was one of those good days, as Martin contributed 25 points and tied a career high with eight assists. He continues to struggle with his three point shot, but appears comfortable with his midrange game and still shows a penchant for getting to the free throw line. He carried the offensive torch for Houston.
2) Samuel Dalembert’s hot streak. After scoring 21 points, pulling down 16 rebounds, and blocking five shots against the Sacramento Kings — his former team — last Friday, most fans probably chalked the performance up to a good old fashioned thirst to avenge the slight of neglect. But Dalembert proved Monday his stellar play is no fluke, as he scored 20 points, grabbed seven rebounds, and blocked three shots versus the Wizards. His defense was invaluable in shutting down intimidating post Javale McGee, and if he continues to score then offensive pressure is lifted from the inconsistent Jordan Hill.
3) Javale McGee. This one is connected to the above post. McGee has shown in the past that his IQ may not be up to snuff (remember his lockout blurt?), but he took the word dumb to new heights Monday with an attempted off-the-backboard alley-oop that earned the ire, and bench, of Coach Flip Saunders. The team is 1-11, man. McGee, who has length and athletic talent for days, had a whopping -18 rating on the court versus Houston and scored only eight points.
4) Goran Dragic’s boost. Lowry was visibly exhausted versus Washington after playing close to 100 minutes combined in Houston’s two consecutive weekend wins, and his 4-14 shooting reflected that. Thankfully, Dragic provided solid relief with nine points and 22 minutes in support of Lowry, who played a significantly lower-than-usual 31 minutes. The services of Dragic are valuable considering the alternative backup, Johnny Flynn, looks far from capable. The added rest helped Lowry produce a good overall floor game, grabbing five rebounds, dishing six assists, and swiping three steals.
5) Terrence Williams’ bench support. Need I say more?
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